rather than pick out individual stocks to trade, it can often be worthwhile to trade the indices themselves, especially in times of high volatility.

for those so inclined, i attach below charts for FTSE and FTSE 250, though one might equally be tempted to trade Dow or S&P, which is significantly broader in its coverage, or even NASDAQ

for ease of reading, i have attached 1 year and 3 month charts in each instance

worth looking, but i think we are getting lower highs and lower lows which is never bullish

and to repeat for the umpteenth .... the eu referendum is galloping towards us and that will assuredly unsettle the markets

FTSE has now bounced through 5,700 and (cash) DOW through 16,130
if these levels can held, then there is a good chance that the upward move will be extended

shame i took my profits so early :-)

In clover at thıs poınt. No nastyness please from US later.

Still got the feeling it's a crap market

From skinny's traders thread .

http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-idUKKCN0VJ0S3

don't disagree, per my earlier post, but even in vicious bear markets there are times when the indices will bounce and often very sharply

That's my point cynic i have got the last few wrong , i tend to go long it drops again and i end up just getting back to evens and out , my timing has been somewhat dodgy of late.

timing is indeed everything and for better or worse, i don't put in stops on the indices not least because of the spiking in either direction

however, with current volatility, what may have been bad timing is quite likely to come right in due course

Agree wıth sentıment. Its not good. I cant help feelıng that sınce 2009 we have ın essence, had an uneasy ceasefıre. For most parts Central Banks have just made ıt worse. If that was at all possıble.

good news or bad .... depends on sentiment and how you want to view it ......

Yellen warns global turbulence could hit growth
The turbulence in global financial markets could deal a setback to US growth and corporate hiring if it persists, the Federal Reserve chair told Congress on Wednesday, in words that will further reduce expectations of near-term increases in interest rates.

Janet Yellen flagged up risks to the US stemming from China and said financial conditions had become “less supportive” of US growth, citing the recent slide in equity prices, higher credit costs for riskier borrowers and the rise in the dollar, which has been battering exporters.

an annoyingly weak start to the afternoon, but despair not ......

Janet Yellen is due to testify in front of Congress at 3pm (i guess that's EST), and Ms Yellen will have the difficult task of being optimistic enough to encourage buyers – without being so hawkish it spooks the markets. If the Federal Reserve chair is overly dovish it could be construed as being too fearful which would spur on the bears.

While the FTSE 100 is above 5600, the outlook will be positive, and 5740 will be a barrier to an upward move.

Lıstenıng to a FED Reserve Chaır is akın to tryıng work out the clues wıth Ted Rodgers on 321 when I were lad.

it doesn't matter what you and i think, but merely the markets :-)

Too many ındıcators cloud the pıcture thats for sure.

boing, went zebedee :-)

if DOW can now hold its nerve, then i guess ~16,200 is the next hurdle
would be handy in FTSE also stayed above 5,700, a level at which it is currently struggling

poxy markets!
should have banked that reasonable DOW profit when it was available ..... never mind; i dare say it will occur again (before i die!)

I wonder if it is just short term trading which is moving the indices at the moment. No one seems interested in anything else the markets have to offer except instant profit. The trend is still down, so for you guys trading the FTSE or DOW isn't a short trade safer than long?

yes and no :-)

though i still have a long running from 16,132 (it should come right in due course), i've just pocketed 43 points from another long - bought at 15,997 and sold at 16,040
it's not big beans, but very welcome

i just get the feeling that there ought to be a decent bounce - other than from 15,900 last night :-) - which of course is not unusual even in a sustained bear market

US fell over again

all rather nasty ..... had hoped that DOW would at least close above 16,000 and did not have the balls to buy when it briefly hit 15,900 either